Christmas Tree Lit on Wall Street - 2001-11-28

A big spruce tree, lights and all, now adorns Wall Street, as the financial district gets into the Christmas spirit. Country singer Lee Greenwood was there to perform at the 78th annual New York Stock Exchange tree-lighting ceremony.

So was Dick Grasso, the chairman of the Exchange, who dedicated this year's event to the New York firefighters and police officers who died at the World Trade Center September 11. "Some 417 of whom gave their lives on September 11th, so that we can all live in this great town of ours," he said. "We light this tree for the 78th occasion in their memory and in honor of their families."

The lighting of a Christmas tree has been the tradition on Wall Street since 1923.